Eason Jordan – Today and 2003
Hugh Hewitt has a good roundup of posts about the current controversy regarding the recent comments of Eason Jordan. Hugh asks a good question about where the mainstream media is on this story. If true, this would rival the Abu Ghraib story. Maybe they are understandably skeptical of Jordan, but even so, just his statement and claims should be getting big coverage.
The first time I heard Jordan’s name was in 2003 when I read “The News We Kept To Ourselves”through a link at Lucianne.com. (Hugh included a link to this story in his post today and discusses it briefly.)
When I first read the 2003 story, I printed it out and re-read it at least a dozen times. In my head, I immediately ran through all the bits of the CNN reports from Baghdad that I could recall and compared the measured words from those reports ( the “alleged” actions of Saddam, “Saddam’s opponents claim", etc.) to those in that story I printed. I have never forgotten that story and keep it in the back of my mind everytime I hear anything even the least bit suspect on CNN. I certainly recall it anytime I see a CNN report from Cuba.
I have told many of my friends and family about that 2003 story, usually when we get into a discussion about how much you can believe thatyou see and hear in the media. I have yet to talk to one person that had heard of that story before I told them about it, and each was shocked to hear the details. I know this is not completely relevant to the recent statement from Jordan, but it is worth remembering in order to put Jordan’s words into proper context and under appropriate scrutiny. It is also something that anyone who relies on CNN for their news should be aware of and should always keep in the back of their mind. If you have not read it recently, print it out or email it to share with your friends and family. If the mainstream media did their jobs properly, not only would the recent statements by Jordan be front page news, but the 2003 story would be known to every American news consumer. That article should have been to CNN what Rathergate was to CBS.
UPDATE: Captain Ed has another (rather bizarre) twist to this story.
-- Lorie Byrd